


sinking under tension

by nctaliaromanova



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Mission
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:07:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23478226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nctaliaromanova/pseuds/nctaliaromanova
Summary: “here,” natasha reaches forth, gently squeezes a dollop of citrus-scented shampoo into her palm and lathers it into his hair. steve stiffens up, and continues staring at natasha while she massages the shampoo into his hair calmly. he crouches down slightly, but natasha catches him in the act and gives an expression in between deadpanned and annoyed.she budges him in the knees, making him stand back up straight again.“just thought it’d be easier if i—”“i can very well do so myself, rogers.”- in which steve and natasha have just returned from a mission and steve might have more than just a sprained shoulder and a few grazes.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov
Comments: 8
Kudos: 80





	sinking under tension

**Author's Note:**

> leave some kudos and a comment if you'd like! i appreciate every single one <3

Past the throbbing pain in between her eyes and the overwhelming exhaustion settling in her bones, Natasha thinks the mission went okay. A couple of grazes and sprained joints don’t bother her— him too— as they drop their gear off at the doorway. Their one-bedroom apartment suddenly feels like a resort, and she attributes it to the terrible lodging Fury had arranged for the both of them. 

Shedding her suit and pulling the band from her hair, she steps into the shower. The tiles beneath offer her respite from the tough Kevlar boots constricting her feet for the past few days, and she sighs. Not long after, she eyes Steve in the bathroom mirror. Natasha knows that he had gotten pretty beat up during the mission, and that he had it far worse than her this time. There’s a slight expression of agony on his face— Natasha sees past everything he’s trying to put up. She always does.

The shower stall is a tad too small to fit both a supersoldier and a spy, so they’re barely inches away from each other as the water pours from above. It’s nothing unusual, they’ve made it an unspoken habit to always join each other. Saves water, that’s what Natasha said.

Natasha is the first to break the uncomfortable silence. 

“You okay?” 

“Yeah.” Steve’s go-to reply. _He could be on the brink of death and he’d still say “I can do this all day”_ , Natasha thinks.

There’s a pause, before Steve finally sighs and spills. “A sprained shoulder, a couple of bullet grazes, and _probably_ internal bleeding,” Steve chuckles under his breath. “Apart from that, I’m fine.”=

Natasha turns around to face him. He still has a semblance of a smile on his lips but Natasha knows that he’s putting it on while powering through the pain. As Steve reaches for the shampoo on the rack, she grabs his wrist and gently pulls it away.

“Here,” Natasha in turn reaches forth, gently squeezes a dollop of citrus-scented shampoo into her palm and lathers it into his hair. Steve stiffens up, and continues staring at Natasha while she massages the shampoo into his hair calmly. He crouches down slightly, but Natasha catches him in the act and gives an expression in between deadpanned and annoyed. 

She budges him in the knees, making him stand back up straight again. 

“Just thought it’d be easier if I—”

“I can very well do so _myself_ , Rogers.” Natasha gives a playful smirk, and Steve swivels back around with his back facing towards her. As the pads of her fingers dig into his scalp, he can feel the tension in his muscles ebb away, and he can feel the dull thud of his heart slow down. Steve tries to recall the last time anyone has ever done something like this— or the last time he’s let someone do this for him— but he comes up with nothing. Because no one has ever taken their time out to properly be gentle with him. As Natasha starts sudsing down his back, her fingers light on his skin, he feels the overwhelming urge to cry.

“I think you needed this,” Natasha observes and states calmly, her fingers still working to ease the knots in his back and shoulders. Steve gives a quiet sigh of appreciation and focuses on her touch. No one has ever been this gentle and loving towards him, and for a fleeting moment, he feels a tear leak.

“Yeah,” Steve almost chokes out, but he plays it off as a self-deprecating laugh. 

“Thank you, Nat.” His eyes water and the tears mix with the shower in streams but with his back against Natasha, she doesn’t see them.

“Anytime, Steve.” Natasha uses his first name for the first time that day. There’s a faint smile playing on her lips that night as she steps out of the shower with Steve.


End file.
